Sunday, September 5, 2010

"Columbine" by Dave Cullen

A Definitive Book!
Forget what you think you know about Columbine.  You will get the true story and much, much more after you read this book.  Dave Cullen had to do a job of research!  Columbine is absolutely riveting which makes it hard to put down.  It goes way beyond just the day of the shooting.  You will learn not only about Eric and Dylan but also other people affected by it too.  The story is gruesome, the writing is superb!  Put this on your "To Read" list.  This story will stay with you long after you are finished reading it.  A lot of the stories of the people whose lives were impacted by the shooting are heartbreaking, gut wrenching and one is a story of triumph!  All makes for one powerful read!  I loved this book and highly recommend it--give it 50 stars!
(Gerard's review 5/21/09)

Columbine is a comprehensive account of the school shooting that is very informative, filled with research, but became tedious for me and depressing.  The author went in-depth revealing not only what happened that day but sharing findings that revealed the thinking of the shooters, and also the horror the victims and their families endured.  I learned a lot about psychopaths by reading this book.  Rumors and myths were exposed, including the story of Cassie Bernall being a martyr and that the shooters were loners and bullied. 

I feel so sad for the victims and their families.  It was a horrible thing to have happen and I felt sad for the shooters who wasted their lives and their parents who really had no clue what their sons were doing, feeling or how to help them.  If you want to find out what really happened and why, I recommend this book.
My husband read this book too and he liked it better than I did.
(Karen's Review 1/23/10) 

Here is a video about it by the author, David Cullen:


Comments we received transferred from our other blog:
I'm still planning to read the Wally Lamb book, too. There was no time while we were getting my book to press and doing the author tour. The tour was a lot of fun, but WAY more daunting than I imagined.
By Dave Cullen on May 21, 2009
Wow. I was ten minutes away when this shooting happened. Not sure I'm ready for such an honest look at something so traumatic yet, but I'm glad that the truth is out there. Columbine is becoming a legend...
By awaitingbloom on May 21, 2009
Thanks for that, Gerard. Very kind of you. (And it did take a lot of work, but it felt worth it.) d
By Dave Cullen on May 21, 2009
Have you read The Hour I First Believed? It makes me want to read the one you suggest.  It's about Columbine, fiction but meticulously researched and quotes from the boys web emails and diaries--fascinating, but the author of I know this much is true & of She's come undone. Wally Lamb, he's spectacular.
By writing on May 21, 2009
I love reading too, this book would interest me. Gattina http://gattinawritercramps.blogspot.com/
By Gattina on January 24, 2010
Please tell us: What categories of literature do you like? What are you reading now? Who are your top five favorite authors? Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Check out Reading, Reading & Life for a review of the audio book of Columbine.

5 comments:

  1. Cullen , who first reported on the story for the online magazine Salon, acknowledges in the book's source notes that thoughts he attributes to Klebold and Harris are conjecture gleaned from the record the pair left behind.

    Jeff Kass takes a more straightforward approach in "Columbine: A True Crime Story," working backward from the events of the fateful day.
    The Denver Post

    Mr. Cullen insists that the killers enjoyed "far more friends than the average adolescent," with Harris in particular being a regular Casanova who "on the ultimate high school scorecard . . . outscored much of the football team." The author's footnotes do not reveal how he knows this; when I asked him about it while preparing this review, Mr. Cullen said he did not necessarily mean to imply that Harris was sexually active. But what else would such words mean?

    "Eric and Dylan never had any girlfriends," the more sober Mr. Kass writes, and were "probably virgins upon death."
    Wall Street Journal

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  2. I think I would really like to read this book. I will never forget that day! It's funny how certain memories can get stuck in one's head. What a tragic situation this was. I would be interested in learning more about it.thanks for sharing this.

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  3. Thanks for the thoughtful review of my book. Word of mouth on books is still vital, and I really appreciate your help in reaching more interested readers.

    There's a lot more info about COLUMBINE at the link, including reviews, an instructor guide, and a massive cache of evidence.

    And here is a short video that summarizes the Columbine shooting and the killers’ motives in three minutes.

    Thanks.

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  4. Thanks for the nice review of my book. I'm glad your husband liked it, too.

    There's a lot more info at my COLUMBINE site, including reviews, an instructor guide, and a massive cache of evidence.

    And this short video summarizes the Columbine shooting and the killers’ motives in 3 minutes.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great review. I enjoyed the video very much. It's very hard to wrap your mind around this kind of thing happening. I do agree with what Mr. Cullen said in the video, this could be any boy. My heart breaks for all of the victims and for the killers too. These boys had to have some very deep rooted problems.

    Thanks for sharing your link to your review.

    ReplyDelete

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